By Jenny Wells

(June 26, 2015) — The University of Kentucky hosted the seventh annual Kentucky Girls STEM Collaborative conference, "Go for the Gold," June 12 at E.S. Good Barn, bringing representatives from across the state together to help advance gender equality in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

"We are pleased to provide a forum for Kentucky residents to join us in this endeavor," said Sue Scheff, co-chair of the collaborative. "Our agenda included a full day of speakers and hands-on activities to excite and entertain girls as well as educate the parents, teachers, and community leaders of the many career opportunities available to young people in Kentucky."

Kentucky continues to rank very low in number of scientists and engineers, high-tech jobs, and

By Jenny Wells

(May 8, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Board of Trustees today approved University Research Professorships for 2015-16 for four faculty members. The professorships carry a $40,000 award to support research. Funds for these annual awards are provided by the Office of the Vice President for Research.

Now in its 39th year, the University Research Professors program's purpose is to enhance and encourage scholarly research productivity, to provide an opportunity for concentrated research effort for selected faculty members, and to recognize outstanding research achievement by members of the faculty.

The 2015-16 University Research Professors are:

Lance E. De Long, a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the UK College of Arts and Sciences, has had

By Blair Hoover, Rebecca Stratton

(May 8, 2015) — Three University of Kentucky students have received the Undergraduate Research Abroad Scholarship (UGRAS), which will support their international independent research projects during the 2015 summer session.

Annie Griggs, a biology major in the College of Arts and Sciences, Faith VanMeter, a psychology major in the College of Arts and Sciences and Marcel Roman, a political science and international studies double major in the College of Arts and Sciences are the recipients of the scholarship — chosen because they demonstrate the ability to explore exceptional academic undergraduate research abroad with the support of UK faculty mentors.  UGRAS is a result of funding from a collaboration between the

By Tony Neely

(April 24, 2015) — Sixty-five University of Kentucky Wildcats earned a place on the 2015 Winter Sports Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll announced by SEC Commissioner Mike Slive.

UK's total of 65 honorees is the fourth-most among the 14 league teams. UK has eight representatives from the men’s basketball team,  six from women’s basketball, 12 from gymnastics, 10 from rifle, 10 from men’s swimming and diving and 19 from women’s swimming and diving. 

The 2015 Winter SEC Academic Honor Roll is based on the grades from the 2014 spring, summer and fall terms. Among other qualifications, a student-athlete must have a grade-point average of 3.00 or above for the preceding academic year or have a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or above in order to make the honor roll, in addition to being a sophomore or higher in

By Clark Bellar

(April 23, 2015) — University of Kentucky's Department of Psychology is hosting the Fifth Annual Interdisciplinary Graduate Student Conference for Research on Children at Risk 3:30-5 p.m. today, in Kastle Hall Room 213 and 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Friday, April 24, in the King

By Gail Hairston, Whitney Harder

(April 22, 2015) — The University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences will honor its faculty at 4 p.m. today at the William T. Young Library Auditorium.

The recipients of this year's college faculty awards are:

Charles Carlson, psychology, 2015-16 Distinguished Professor. For more information, visit http://uknow.uky.edu/content/carlson-honored-teaching-research-and-service

Beth Guiton, assistant professor of chemistry ‒ Distinguished Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award

Guiton leads a materials chemistry group in the Center for Advanced Materials, investigates chemistry at the nanometer length scale, working at the intersection between

By Gail Hairston

(April 17, 2015) — Charles R. Carlson, professor of psychology in the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences, has been named the 2015-16 Distinguished Professor in Arts and Sciences. The recognition honors Carlson’s distinction as a scholar, as a teacher and mentor, and by his service to the university and the profession.

Much of Carlson’s research focuses on helping people better manage and control their responses to physical — especially orofacial — and psychological pain. He has published more than 115 papers in this area, including examinations of diaphragmatic breathing strategies. He also developed a virtual reality paradigm that

By Whitney Harder

(April 16, 2015) — Recognizing their outstanding contributions to teaching and scholarship at the University of Kentucky, two UK faculty members were honored with the William B. Sturgill Award and Albert D. and Elizabeth H. Kirwan Memorial Prize yesterday, Wednesday, April 15, at the annual Faculty Awards Ceremony in the Lexmark Room of the Main Building.

Thomas R. Zentall, professor of psychology in the UK College of Arts and Sciences, was awarded the 2015 William B. Sturgill Award, given each year to a graduate faculty member who has

By Whitney Hale

(April 15, 2015) — University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections Research Center will host an opening reception for an exhibit highlighting four undergraduates' Learning Lab internship projects from 3-4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 16, in the Great Hall of the Margaret I. King Library Building. The event will feature presentations from the four Learning Lab interns, including commentary on their scholarly projects.

The College of Arts & Sciences is proud to announce the recipients of this year’s College teaching awards, They are Renee Fatemi, physics and astronomy (Outstanding Teaching Award), Moisés Castillo, Hispanic Studies (Outstanding Teaching Award), Charley Carlson, psychology (Outstanding Teaching Award), Anna Voskresensky,

By Gail Hairston

(March 4, 2015) — You, too, can be a STAR, a star student, star leader, star innovator.

The deadline is March 9 for undergraduates to apply to STAR, the University of Kentucky’s Summer Training in Alcohol Research program. Students can study alcohol‐related disorders like alcoholism, fetal alcohol syndrome, cancer, family relationship dynamics, medications development and risk factors.

An innovative grant from the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) funds the UK program that both advances research of alcohol abuse, but also trains tomorrow's

by Whitney Harder

(Dec. 18, 2014) — Thirteen University of Kentucky students took home top honors at the Kentucky Academy of Science 100th Annual Meeting in November, where hundreds of undergraduate and graduate students from Kentucky colleges and universities participated in research competitions.

Winners included graduate and undergraduates from the College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences, Gatton College of Business and Economics, College of Health Sciences and College of Public Health.

by Jenny Wells

(Dec. 17, 2014) — The University of Kentucky Office for Undergraduate Research has presented 17 students with the Oswald Research and Creativity Program awards.

"There is so much high quality research being done by UK undergraduate students," said Diane Snow, director of the Office for Undergraduate Research. "We're very grateful for funding through the Oswald Awards to be able to recognize and reward these exceptional individuals!"

Established in 1964 by then-UK President John Oswald, the Oswald Research and Creativity Program encourages research and creative activities by undergraduate students at UK. The objectives of the program are to stimulate creative work by undergraduate students and to recognize individuals who

(Nov. 20, 2014) — As University of Kentucky freshmen settle into life as college students, a new resource on campus has been helping them adjust to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) programs, known for difficult coursework. Undergraduate instructional assistants (UIAs) within one of the university's newest Living Learning Programs, STEMCats, use their past experiences to mentor incoming UK students.

The College of Arts and Sciences recently produced a podcast about the STEMCats community, featuring many STEMCats UIAs explaining what they enjoy about the program and their connections with younger STEM students.

"You get to

by Gail Hairston

(Nov. 20, 2014) — The reason a female student might not return to her university after her freshman year:

   A) Finances

   B) Grades

   C) Rape

Too many times ‒ more frequently than we have truly understood ‒ the answer is “C.”

The results of a study done among female freshmen at the University of Kentucky in 2011 linking sexual assault and poor academic performance are “direct and compelling,” wrote its authors, Carol Jordan, director of the UK Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women; Jessica Combs, a graduate student in clinical psychology; and Gregory Smith, a professor, university research professor, and director of the doctoral program in clinical psychology.

It wasn’t particularly surprising – for UK results mirror numerous national studies -- that the rate

by Whitney Hale, Mack McCormick

(Nov. 12, 2014) — Now in its 33rd year, the Kentucky Book Fair will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15, at the Frankfort Convention Center. This year’s fair will feature around 200 authors showcasing their most recent books including several authors from the University of Kentucky and University Press of Kentucky (UPK).

Sponsored by The State Journal, and co-sponsored by the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, 

by Parissa Zargar

(Oct. 15, 2014) — University of Kentucky senior, Jaye "Jaxcy" Odom, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, has received the Chickasaw Nation Lifetime Scholarship. This honor is awarded to tribal citizens who are full-time students pursuing a degree from an accredited institution of higher education. Odom has been involved with the Chickasaw Nation through her attendance of tribal meetings and participation in activities to promote pride in Native American culture.

"When I found out that I had been awarded the Chickasaw Lifetime Scholarship, I was elated. It was an indescribable honor to be a recipient of this highly competitive scholarship, and it

by Gail Hairston 

(Sept. 30, 2014) — More than an “s” has been added since the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Science was created in 1908 with only seven faculty members. In fact there was a College of Arts and Science even before the institution was named the University of Kentucky; the institution was called the State University, Lexington, Kentucky (previously Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky and State College) until 1916.

In those 106 years, several of today’s largest colleges were birthed from the original College of Arts and Science’s former programs, including today’s College of Education, College of Communication and Information, College of Social Work and College of Fine Arts.

The college grew quickly under the inspiration and commitment of President James Patterson, whose statue now graces the plaza next to

by Gail Hairston

(Aug. 26, 2014) — It’s rarely easy to get a child out of bed, dressed, fed and off to school, especially when it’s still dark outside. Schoolchildren everywhere (their parents too, if they are being honest) groan for “just a little longer” in the sack.

School systems that have adjusted and re-adjusted school start times in search of the perfect balance may have to reevaluate the task after reviewing recent findings from a team of researchers at the University of Kentucky. Their work has found that elementary-age children living in middle- and upper-class neighborhoods of Kentucky demonstrate weaker academic performance when they are required to start classes early.

Recently published by the American Psychological Association, the research was led by Peggy S. Keller, UK associate